A PET CAT WITH A TRACK RECORD for stealing has slipped back into his criminal ways despite convincing his owner he was a reformed character. Kleptomaniac Theo, from Ipswich, first hit the headlines in 2013 for stealing Christmas decorations. Recently he has been stealing toy food, including a pineapple and an aubergine.

“We are deeply ashamed of our cat, especially as he had convinced us that he had changed his criminal ways”, his owner wrote to neighbours. Rachael Drouet created a leaflet for her neighbours in a bid to reunite the stolen items with their rightful owners.

“This year has been relatively quiet, save for some Bettaware catalogues and the odd flat balloon”, the leaflet read. “Until a few days ago when he started bring home toy food. So far we have cheese, a green pepper, fish, a pineapple, an aubergine, and a felt basket to put them all in”.

Theo, a five-year-old Siamese cross, also managed to bring home a child’s body warmer. Earlier this year, he stole a catalogue from a house down the street owned by a policeman, which Ms Drouet said “wasn’t ideal”. Among the items stolen in the last couple of years are muslin cloths, fluffy pens, a USB phone charger cable and a child’s piece of art. Theo also took to stealing Christmas decorations from neighbours trees.

Ms Drouet said this year she managed to reunite items from Theo’s haul with their rightful owners before too long. “I wrote the flyers and then luckily managed to find out who all the things belonged to”, Ms Drouet said. “You get tired of knocking on neighbours’ doors and saying ‘me again'”.

ARE YOU INTERESTED IN HELPING ANIMALS here in Spain. If you can help support or rehome an animal in distress, contact Pets in Spain. This wonderful registered charity tirelessly helps dogs, cats, and other animals in need in Spain. Visit their website or find them on Facebook.

THE SOUTH COSTA BLANCA COMMUNITY rallied round local animal charities on Thursday to raise money to help the stray, abandoned, or mistreated animals within the local area, helping to raise much needed funds for their care and finding homes for these unloved domestic pets.

Locals descended on The Country Club in Ciudad Quesada to enjoy an afternoon of fun and organised events to raise money for these fabulous charities that do so much to help pets in need, here in Spain.

It provided a rare opportunity for local people to meet the teams behind the charities, and to see first-hand the animals they work with. As a result of the afternoons’ work at least one dog found a new home, and it’s hoped that more will follow given the much needed exposure that the animals and the charities experienced.

Mark Mockford from Pets in Spain said “People are well aware of the abuse that happens here in Spain, but sometimes I’m not sure if everyone realises the scope of the problem”. Both Help for Podencos and Pets in Spain have helped to rescue hundreds of dogs from squalid conditions and abuse.

Pets in Spain have undertaken a decade-long campaign of neutering female cats across the South Costa Blanca to help control the feral cat population, capturing, neutering, and releasing truly feral cats, or rehoming abandoned domestic felines.

“With the generous help of local vets we’ve neutered more than 1,500 female cats over the last ten years” said Mark. “That’s nearly one cat every other day”.

Paws On The Move offer dedicated specialised pet transport to and from the UK and provide prospective pet owners with professional advice with regard to transporting their feline or canine loved ones internationally. With regular scheduled trips and a dedicated custom-fitted vehicle, Paws On The Move offer the safest and most stress-free method of transporting pets.

Both Pets in Spain and Hope for Podencos rely upon the generosity of their local community. Contact them to find out how you can help animals in need with only some of your time, including offering to walk their dogs, or offering a temporary foster home to an animal in need. Small financial donations are always appreciated, see their websites or find them on Facebook for more details.

WITH IMMIGRATION A STRONG POLITICAL issue in the UK at the moment, it should come as no surprise that canny canines are on the move too. A nurse from Wales fell in love with a stray dog whilst on holiday and made arrangements for her to start a new life in the UK.

A holidaymaker had her heart touched by a lovable stray dog in Spain took it back to her home in Wales. Nurse Janice John, 59, and husband Steve were in a cafe when they spotted the Spanish Podenco pooch in a starving state on the streets. They began feeding the wide-eye dog and decided they couldn’t leave her behind. So they arranged for her to emigrate from Grenada in Southern Spain to start a new life in Llanelli.

Now the dog, renamed Cassie, is loving her life as part of her new family. Janice said “Cassie is such a beautiful dog. She is a little bundle of joy and happiness from head to toe. Some friends thought I was crazy doing what I did but I just couldn’t forget her”.

“We were sitting in a cafe when she came up to us. She was clearly starving and all the ribs of her spine were showing, she was covered in tics and fleas. It was so sad. I fed her every single day we were on holiday and I just couldn’t forget her when I got home because I felt I had a real connection with her. I knew I had to find her”.

Janice joined the Valle Verde Animal Rescue group on Facebook and finally they managed to locate the dog. Janice said “They told me they would see if they could find her – I didn’t even have a picture of her so could only describe what she looked like. It was a miracle when they sent me a photograph of her. I recognised her straight away”.

Podenco dogs are hunting dogs are often abandoned or killed at the end of the season. They are sometimes thrown into rivers, ravines or wells or abandoned in remote places if they have performed badly.

Cassie, aged about nine months, was driven the thousands of miles to the UK by the charity For The Love of Dogs and Cats – a charity helping animals in Spain. “I decided I would adopt her – she just stole my heart” Janice told us.

“When she saw me I think she recognised me. She was trembling from head to toe and was so tiny. I gave her a big cuddle”.

“Soon after we first brought her home I noticed our fruit bowl was empty. I looked in her basket and there were three nectarines and two bananas in her bed. She was stashing them as all she had known was scavenging from tables. Now she is very happy and loves her food – she has dog biscuits and wet food twice a day. Sometimes I will give her a slice of cheese as a treat”.

“She is getting along famously too with our other dogs – three Bassett Hounds; Alfie, Winnie and Florence. She really is a bundle of joy and I am so glad we rescued her. She is a wonderful dog and we are lucky to have her”. Cassie is enjoying her new life in Llanelli.

CAN YOU HELP A DOG FIND A HOME?For The Love of Dogs and Cats deliver homeless animals all over Europe, with twice monthly deliveries of happiness to the UK. If you can help a dog find a new family with you or your loved ones, please visit their website today.